Happy Inauguration Day! As the TV news waxes on about the shift in power, my thoughts shifted to power in game development. Those of you who work in development may have witnessed power struggles between designers and programmers, or between producers and everyone else. It could be that you, as a developer, aren’t concerned about whether story and writing is relevant in games or not. Your concern may be with what writers really want — is it respect or power?

Respect
Many developers, writers and otherwise, believe that if developers respected writers more and gave them the same amount of time to work as other departments, then the quality would improve. Therefore, respect for the craft must come before the craft can prove itself as a necessary component of game development.

On the other hand, bringing in writers early won’t make a great deal of difference if you don’t bring in the right writers or work with them effectively. In this sense, respect must be earned, not given. Fortunately, you have this blog to master some of these hurdles already. Do you think respect comes first for writers, or that writers must first earn it?

Power
What is the real price of bringing in writers early and integrating them more fully into the development process? Some executive producers and creative directors prefer to create the story, and view writers as a potential enemy that could lampoon their stories. In this sense, writers are seen as a threat to their power and their ability to effect their creative vision.

On the other hand, developers who bring on writers to improve their stories find they have the power of choice. If you don’t like the writers’ work, you can ignore it. If you like it, you are in a position to take the credit for bringing on good writers. Writers are rarely in a position to usurp your position. In this sense, writers can actually boost your power within the company. How do you view writers’ power at your company?

Quality
“Narrative designers” like us seek to weave story and theme throughout every aspect of the game. It may sound like we’re trying to take over your game! But are we really after power? Certainly, there may be a few writers out there who really want to be in control. However, I would say the majority of narrative designers and writers want the same thing the artist and programmer want — an opportunity to perform at the height of our ability and use what we do best to improve the game for the player. Power, respect, what-have-you are just means to this very important end.

Are you ready to inaugurate writers into your development team? What do you think the biggest stumbling block is to making a place for writers and narrative designers in games — lack of power and respect, or something else entirely?